TO THE SOUTH OF HOME is a video essay that depicts an imagined conversation between my father and I, as his sudden death left us no chance for a final conversation. Through this work, I attempt to confront my childhood trauma through the artistic and experimental expressions of autobiographical video art. By integrating multiple lines of narratives, I seek to reconcile our damaged relationship and reflect upon my Chinese-Australian bicultural identity. This project employs ideas and techniques from both autobiography and video essays. The juxtaposition of archival footage and my visual diary depicts my conflicted emotional journey. The narration of the ambiguous short verse symbolises an intimate conversation between a father and his son.
Ming Liew is an Australian photographer and filmmaker based in Melbourne. Born in China and raised in Australia, Ming’s practice finds its roots in his bicultural background. Informed by auto-ethnographical research, Ming creates video and photo-based artwork to examine and convey the migrant experience in contemporary Australia. Accentuating the paradoxes between lived experience and socio-cultural expectations, Ming uses his work to advocate for social change through cultural understanding.
Ming is currently a Master of Fine Art candidate at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. Previously working as a professional architect, Ming holds a Master in Architecture from Tsinghua University and a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture from the University of Canberra. Since 2016 he has participated in group exhibitions and screenings in Australia and China at both artist-run initiatives and public events such as the Bunjil Place outdoor screening program, Melbourne. His work is held in private collections in Australia and China.